CWU commencement speakers to send Class of 2026 off on a high note

It’s the end of another successful school year at CWU, with two commencement ceremonies scheduled for Saturday, June 13, in Tomlinson Stadium.

Each year, two students are selected to deliver an address to their peers on this joyous occasion — one for the morning ceremony and one for the afternoon — based on submitted speeches reviewed by a university committee.

This year, biology major Jaspinder Kaur and education major Dontae Owens will represent the Class of 2026 as they prepare to join the real world. Read on to learn more about them and the messages they will impart to their peers.

A.M. Ceremony
Jaspinder Kaur

Biology major Jaspinder Kaur started her college journey at Yakima Valley College, earning her associate’s degree while working out what her future held. Through volunteer work, she discovered that her road would lead to medicine.

“When I first started college, I wasn’t sure what I wanted to do with my degree,” Kaur said. “Once I started volunteering with the MultiCare hospital in Yakima, though, I knew I wanted to do something in medicine and be part of that community.”

Kaur applied to CWU in order to stay close to her family in Yakima, and she soon found her stride on the Ellensburg campus.

“I was shy at the beginning, but here, I found a sense of belonging,” she said. “Everybody struggles with acceptance at some point, but when I came here, all of my peers were in the same classes and clubs, so I wanted to share that sense of welcoming and community with my class.”

Kaur’s outlook on life is grounded in her Sikh heritage, which emphasizes human connection and selflessness in aiding others. This approach has spurred her on through every challenge she faced along her path to graduation.

“In my culture, we focus on becoming human first, and finding the humanity in others, too,” Kaur said. “That’s where I get my motivation from, that feeling of unity through our shared human experience.”

Once she finishes her degree, Kaur will take a gap year to look for the perfect program to continue her education. She hopes that her classmates at commencement gain a newfound appreciation for the support networks that got them this far by listening to her speech.

“We obviously didn’t do this by ourselves,” Kaur said. “We all had huge support propping us up, from friends, family, and faculty. I hope to express my appreciation for all those people surrounding us and building us up.”

P.M. Ceremony
Dontae Owens

After earning his bachelor’s degree in sociology from Georgetown University in Washington, D.C., Teaching Certification master’s student Dontae Owens realized that his next step would bring him a lot closer to his hometown of Olympia.

“I learned that CWU had a great teaching program, and a good reputation for helping prepare future teachers,” he said. “I’m excited to have my own classroom and put everything I have learned into practice.”

Throughout the program, Owens has found joy and inspiration in his student teaching, and through the relationships he has built with his instructors.

“Spending time in the classroom, building relationships with students, and watching them grow throughout the year has been the best part,” he said. “I have also enjoyed learning from professors who actually care about helping future teachers succeed.”

Owens’ journey has been marked by personal and professional development, all combining to lift him up to become the person he knows he’ll need to be to help his own students succeed.

“I know that for a lot of us, this journey has been about more than earning a degree,” he said. “For me, it’s been about perseverance, growth, and finding confidence in myself as a teacher and a person.”

After accepting his diploma, Owens is continuing straight into his teaching career at Summitview Elementary School in Yakima as a fifth grade teacher. As he prepares to address his peers at commencement, he hopes they will walk away inspired to be resilient in the face of adversity, and proud of the hard work they’ve put in to get this far.

“I hope my classmates take away the importance of resilience and remember that the obstacles we face can help shape who we are becoming,” Owens said. “I also hope they leave feeling proud of everything they have accomplished and excited for what is coming next.”